Prediction of Service Life for Vacuum Insulation Panels with Fumed Silica Kernel and Foil Cover

For vacuum insulation panels (VIPs) with fumed silica kernels and foils as cover, a calculation model is developed to predict the service life. It is defined as the period during which the thermal conductivity of the VIP has risen 50% due to infusion of air and moisture. Two panel sizes, 50 ×50 × 1 cm3 and 100 × 100 × 2 cm3 are considered. For VIPs with laminated aluminum foils, calculated service lives of many decades are determined. For VIPs with aluminum-coated multilayer foils, shorter service lives still above 20 are calculated. This is due to the higher water vapor transmission through the Al-coated multilayer foils (compared to laminated Al foil) and the humidity-related increase in thermal conductivity. Overall, our model predicts service lives, which are large enough for applications of VIPs in buildings. An open question that remains is the long-term stability of the foil cover.